Bear & Cougar Issues
 

This is my first post; no I’m not a troll or some lib posing as a hunter. I’m a miner. My name is David and I go by RotGrub. Still not convinced, go to youtube and do a search for RotGrub Mining Clan. It should bring you to my channel. The current video got me banned from my Canadian mining forums… those boys got it tough up there; but that’s another story.

I need bear and cougar knowledge; it seems they are attracted to us. My wife and I mine in CA from Columbia to Coulterville at elevations between 1700-3000 ft and wherever we set base camp the bears find us within a few days. They come just before dawn and trash our camp.

The cougars seem to hunt us while we’re mining. We work dry creeks and have had cougars come up the creek beds snooping around. In the past my lab Tug provided early warning and distractions but we had to let him go last season after 13 years of loyal service and we are just now ready to get another pup.

We do our best in camp with the food; locking up all the food, garbage, kitchen towels, tooth paste dirty clothing etc… in the truck. I have a M1101 military trailer that stores the mining gear and ice chest. We do pack in 125 gal of water and it is stored in open tanks. We sleep in tents and that’s a bit stressful…

We are well armed, but I rather be educated on issues that would prevent me from being in a bad position. USFS knows who and where we are so explaining a dead bear or cougar (out of season, no tags, already a stressed relation with USFS etc…) is not high on my list; but still below living.

So what can I do to better understand the behavior of these beasts and is there anything we can do to detour them from entering our camp.

That's a tough one......................

Everything you have done by setting up camp there is what is attracting them.

IMO - If you have the right to be there, then you have the right to defend your property & yourselves !!!

Just like they did in the ole' days; but this is a new day & age we live in - huh ?!?!

California is in a bad drought as you well know, the bears are not finding the berries and other foods they need and this will become a bigger problem for you as fall comes because bears will be in an even bigger need for all the food they can find and they will always go for the easy meal.
Any food scents will bring them in make sure your grill is locked up. You can try using an air horn when the bears come around but I would yell at them and fire off some rounds to scare them off every time, they will soon decide your no longer an easy target. Don't shoot the bears unless you or your pets are being attacked !

The cougars are hunting you and your pets and they will attack a puppy as soon as the opportunity presents itself. You are low to the ground gold panning ( if that's your operation) and you appear as an easy target but even so if they want you they will attack, ( if they attack FIGHT,) I have met them in the mountains here in Colorado big game hunting and they are not much for backing down. ( I didn't shoot I surprised them and so just backed away), I would do the same for the cats and use an air horn or shoot off some rounds always shoot in their and the bears direction but not to hit them. It wouldn't hurt to tell some bear and cat hunters the location as they can not only take one but they will remind the animals that they are in danger and it will help them leave you alone. You may also want to ask your wildlife officers what to do as you don't want to break any laws but you have to keep your family safe. Don't approach mother bears with cubs as that can be dangerous.
Good luck !

Put an electric fence around your camp to at least keep them out of that area all the time.

+1

In the event I sounded a little gruff; as Trump would say, "build a wall" !!!:arms:

I've already prepared myself if it comes to that. If I'm able I will not allow a bear to harm anyone in my camp. I just don't know anything about bears and so I tried to find people that do. Thanks for your advice.

The area we're in is very dry, there is no obvious food as far as I can see. I know the deer and at least one bob cat is drinking from our supply tanks. Never any bears or cougar tracks around the tanks.

I'm told that these "little" black bears are easily scared off. An from my experiences so far that is somewhat true. But chances are we will run across one with an attitude. Never seen any cubs.

The cougars seem bold. The last time we had an encounter we (my wife and I) we working a 6' deep pit in a dry creek. The cat was coming up creek. My lab was sleeping and broke into a vicious raid down the creek. By the time I got out of the pit, the cat & Tug we having a standoff. As soon as the cat saw me it took off up the hillside into the thick forest. Tug tracked this invisible cat for 30 min moving up and down the creek with his nose in the air. Once he calmed down we went back to work.

Cats seem to be daytime while bears are always just before dawn.

You know, that's do-able. I'm almost positive where they are entering from and all I would need is a battery and some steel fencing. I'm guessing a good jolt from that might teach them.

We're usually in bed by 8pm. I keep my keys with the electronic alarm next to me, a big spot light and my .44mag with my special homemade cannon loads. I sleep good until about 2-3am and then very lightly. Dam bears have me conditioned...

You may want to store your food a distance away from camp and possibly hang it from a tree off a large branch so they can't reach it off the ground and can't reach low enough to grab it from the tree branch. Bear spray could work on bears/cougars to scare them off and hopefully teach them to avoid humans. Also make sure your being diligent with your trash removal and storage. I also suggest covering your water tanks. If your using them for your drinking water its probably not sanitary for the wildlife to be able to drink from it. Plus possibility of bugs inhabiting the water, birds etc pooping in it and so on.

You have two different things going on at the same time. In my mind Bears are raiders of opportunity and are just following their noses to a possible meal. I've only had a few Bear encounters, so I'm far from an expert.

I've had more encounters with Cougars and in your shoes I would be very afraid. They are ambush hunters and unlike Bears aren't really interested in your chow, they are interested in you.

A two year old Cougar freshly out on his or her own has a tough time, they get to the point it is either eat or starve to death. In other words they get desperate.

They can get way close before you are aware they are anywhere near. I can think of at least two incidences where my dogs didn't even know they were there, the Cats came in down wind for a look see.

Imagine a 100-150 lb. Cat crouched under some brush waiting for you to walk by. Or watching you from a berm or a bank on a Creek. Chances are if they are in the area they have already been close enough to you to hit with a thrown rock and you didn't even know they were there.

One instance that still makes the hair stand up on the back of my neck. I was exercising a couple of my dogs and happened to glance down a bank into the brush maybe 40 feet away and saw a Cougar there. That Cat was just crouched there watching joggers run by, it was a fairly heavily traveled fire trail, not far from some houses. Both of those dogs were Cat/Coyote dogs and neither of them alerted on that Cat. If the Cat hadn't twitched an ear I would have never seen it.

I'm from the it is better to be safe than sorry school of thought, either have a designated guard while you are working, get a big dog with a good nose or leave until it rains and the prey numbers improve.

I had one of my dogs get her stomach opened up by Cougar. We where running Rabbits near a little water seep in dry country. I was totally unaware of what had happened until I saw the Cat running away with my dog chasing it with her intestines dragging the ground. The whole thing went down in near total silence. I didn't hear a thing until the Dog went nuts and started singing as she was chasing the Cat. Best guess is the Cat had ambushed the dog and she put up a better fight than the Cat expected. Darned Cats don't growl, yowl or do like in the movies and make some sort of hubbub before or during an attack, they are silent killers.

One of the few places I keep a round in the chamber and the flap opened on my brush holster, is in Cougar country. And even then I most always have a dog with me and no big expectations of seeing that Cat until it is right on top of me. That Cat likely knows when it is within a quarter of a mile of you, you are at a distinct disadvantage.

Bears are most active at dawn and dusk but will be out any time, the most dangerous bear is one with cubs the 2nd is a bear who is used to humans and associates them with food. We had a woman here who fed black bears at her house one day the bears ate her.

Fire crackers might work well but they may start a fire. Most of the bears I've seen ran off, the mountain lions I met stood there ground and I think it was about 5am or so, never been so scared in my life.
I think the fence idea is a great one but keep spooking them off. Good luck and be safe with all your wild fires. If your seeing small bears they may have just been kicked out by mama and in need of easy food, black bears can get to over 700 pounds.

Anatolian shepherd, Spanish mastiff, or Great Pyrenees would be ideal to keeping critters at bay. The only issue with a GP is they will probably keep you up barking.

turke7, no good trees in the area for that. I lock it in the truck cab. I have concerns with the bear spray. I kinda get the feeling that one would end up perhaps chasing a bear to get a good spray, if the bear is charging I would not want to rely on spray. But if sprayed around the camp would it have any effect? Never used it...The water is for mining and our recirculating systems.

Locking your food in a truck cab is a good way to one day find your truck destroyed. If you have no trees to hang your food you should dig a cash and put steel doors on it with a heavy lock. Bear spray is not made to be sprayed around as a deterrent it is a last resort made to be sprayed in the bears face so that its eyes burn so badly it can't see and it has a hard time breathing. It sounds to me like you are no where prepared enough to be doing what you are doing in an area that has predators that kill and eat humans and you need some expert advice on how to do it. I suggest you contact the wildlife agency that has jurisdiction of the state you are mining in. Those animals are doing what they do, you are in their backyard and you need to learn how to safely be there and how not to attract trouble to the best of your ability. You don't say what kind of shelter you are living in or if you have bear proffed it.

Oldtimr---They stay in tents and are out in CA. I think he needs to do exactly what you stated if he doesn't even know how bear spray is used!

I've always had labs. For the past 25 years a black lab has been at our side. We're thinking about another or a golden retriever. My sister had Mastiff's and they seem to lack the energy or stamina for us. I do like the Pyrenees but like the retriever, the longer hair becomes problematic. The wife is voting for the retriever while I'm leaning lab... maybe one of each.

We have no other option. I realize what a bear could do to my truck but I'm hoping we hear and react before it comes to that. The emergency button on the key ring has worked before. Hit that and all the lights start flashing, horn blasting etc... Depending on where we decide to mine our base camp could be set up in April and left until November. We are now working areas where we are mobile. Some are set up and taken down within as little 3-4 days to a week or so. We are small scale prospectors, no huge equipment, or employees.. We move around and look for areas to be mined. We hunt, just not for flesh. When you say "not to attract trouble" that is what we seek.

All of you have been very helpful. What I've taken from this is 1. the problem is more serious than I thought. 2. we will get a few cans of bear spray. 3. I don't expect much help from the USFS as they would love to find another reason to keep us out of "their" forest. 4. Get another dog(s) ASAP. 5. Reach out to local hunters and take them mining...

I understand some of your concerns and take note. But I cannot allow these creatures to detour me from the wilderness and exploring. There are plenty two legged beasts hell bent on achieving that but they have failed so far. There is no place I rather be. You want danger; I live about 40 miles east of San Francisco CA and have worked as a builder throughout what we call the Bay Area for the past 35 years... I'm deep in lib country and that my friends is real danger...

I was able to get a few cam picks from a claim just to the south. How do you upload pictures? I see the tab but it asks for a url.

My little brother (6'6" around 230 :) ) did what you are doing most of his adult life. Worked construction in the winter and mined for Gold in the warmer months. And did it in the same area you are in.

You might want to consider a Weimaraner which are good gun dogs and are good personal protection dogs. Or maybe a German Short Hair or a German Drahthaar Pointer.

I've had pretty good luck spooking unwanted attention away from myself with a powerful LED flashlight set on strobe. I haven't tried it on Bears or big Cats, but it works on Boar, Elk and unfriendly dogs. Maybe a high DB air horn might also prove useful. The only trouble with gimmicks is they often get forgotten in a panic.

I had an unfriendly Bear try to come in the front door of our tent at 0 dark thirty, after my brother had bounced a rock off it's head (which was really dumb). I did remember my folding knife and cut open the back of the tent to escape. Bear spray is always a good idea and actually works well on Rattlers also.

This site is quick easy and free,
http://postimage.org/

Just copy and paste the "hot link for forums" link to your post.

Tried it several times, it up loads to the site but when I try to link or paste to the tread it is only a link. I uploaded two pictures and I think they are being combined or I'm just not getting it. No worries, just a game cam with a bear on one day and a cougar the next day.

Well, I kinda sat back and watched this thread unfold for a bit. You have gotten some great advise so far. I've only encountered big cats a few times in my hunting career. Never hunted them (don't eat them but I've been told they are actually good eating). But I grew up black and brown bear hunting. Blackies I have no worries about whatsoever. I'm bigger than most of them :s2: and the ones I've encountered in camp were easily scared off with me standing tall and shouting and clapping. At well over 6 feet and a good bit over 250 I probably represented a bit too much trouble for them. Momma bears with cubs trailing encountered in the woods are a 100% total different story. Dem girls aint sceert of nuttin! In my experience with bears, I have found dogs to be about the best defense one can have next to a good firearm and knowledge of using it. You mentioned Mastiffs being too lethargic? Did you know that that breed was actually designed as a war dog? They may look a bit on the lazy side but a well trained and in shape Mastiff would tear and average blackie up. I really don't know that much about cougars but I would imagine one wouldn't want to tangle with a Mastiff either. My Rotties go just about everywhere I go (they stay in camp when I'm out hunting) but I really have no worries of anything 2 legged or 4 legged getting through them without one hell of a fight.

BTW, I saw someone mentioned blackies getting to 700 pounds? Maybe in the Zoo or up in Canada one MIGHT reach that but that is HIGHLY irregular. Average weight on blackies is around 300-400 on a nice Boar. Maybe stretching to 500 in a really good feeding area.